DESIGN INFRASTRUCTURE FOR LARGE ORGANIZATIONS
Luke Yeung
Bachelor of Science (Architecture)
McGill University 1995
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Submitted to the Department of Architecture in partial fulfillment
to the requirements for the degree of Master of Architecture at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
June 2001
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author
Luke Yeung
May 24, 2001
certified by
Peter Testa Associate Professor of Architecture
accepted by
Bill Hubbard Jr. Adjunct Associate Professor of Architecture
@ 2001 Luke Yeung. All rights reserved.
The author hereby grants MIT permission to
reproduce and to distribute publicly paper
and electronic copies of this thesis document
in whole or in part.
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Thesis Readers
Turid Horgen Research Associate in Urban Studies and Planning
Hiroshi Ishii Associate Professor of Media Arts and Sciences
Design Infrastructure for Large Organizations
Luke Yeung
submitted to the Department of Architecture on May 24, 2001
inpartial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Architecture
ABSTRACT
How may design address the conditions of change and creativity in today's workplace environment? Increasingly there isthe
recognition that in order to develop effective workplaces, the design not only needs to respond to functional requirements
but also increase the role of the individual users and suppliers in the ongoing evolution of the office space. Expanding
the level of participation in the design and decision-making process increases the level of complexity and requires the
re-evaluation of existing design conventions. Ifthe design team chooses to meaningfully engage inthese matters, then
issues such as the relationship between individual identity and organizational culture, coordination and distribution of
resources, and consideration of perceptions and changing behaviors necessarily need to be addressed. The assessment
and formulation of these issues generates the basis for this architectural investigation on a collaborative design process
in the workplace.
The investigation begins by examining conventional design paradigms in order to articulate some of the limitations in the
design process as currently practiced by architects and designers. Inparticular, design processes that clearly delineate the
providers (manufacturers, designers, consultants) from the users (organizations and the employees) are seen as problematic
due to the fact that the end users themselves are often excluded from important decision-making transactions. What is
needed isan alternative design approach that can engage individual users to continuously shape their office needs and
environments within parameters of a negotiated framework. Despite the added complexity, it isargued that this direction
iscritical in providing an ongoing and systematic process to accommodate for user interventions and design innovation
intoday's networked office.
Several design exercises serve to illustrate this alternative approach and its possible impact on the physical spaces in
progressive office organizations. These exercises emphasize the visual aspects of communicating temporal relationships,
behaviors and design processes. Specific scenarios are also investigated exploring new dynamics and their ability to affect the
physical qualities of the design outcomes. By developing a more distributed and iterative approach, the thesis aims to create
a new model of workplace design that can foster new interactions, innovation, effective evaluation and collaboration.
Thesis Supervisor: Peter Testa
Title: Associate Professor of Architecture
CONTENTS
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INTRODUCTION: RAPID EVOLUTION INWORKPLACE ENVIRONMENTS
7
EXERCISE: SCENES FROM THE OFFICE
10
EXERCISE: MAPPING THE CONVENTIONAL PROCESS OF DESIGN
11
DESIGN AS AN ACTIVE AGENT INTHE WORKPLACE
13
EXERCISE: DYNAMIC 3D VISUALIZATIONS
17
DESIRED DESIGN OUTCOMES FOR THE NEW WORKPLACE
19
EXERCISE: STILLS FROM A VIDEO
21
TOWARDS A NEW SPATIAL PLANNING MODEL
22
DESIGNING THE RESPONSE: THE DESIGN INFRASTRUCTURE
THE NETWORKED COMMUNITY
MATERIAL INNOVATIONS
ONGOING COMMITMENT FOR COLLABORATION
27
EXERCISE: DESIGNING THE PROTOTYPE
38
CONCLUSIONS
40
BIBLIOGRAPHY
41
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
INTRODUCTION: RAPID EVOLUTION INWORKPLACE ENVIRONMENTS
The expansion of high technology industries in North America has contributed to a renewed
interest in workplace design for large organizations. The rapid growth of these organizations
has led to the development of new office facilities that enables the consolidation of multiple
work groups and divisions within one physical location. Inmany instances, these organizations
have relocated from downtown and urban settings to suburban areas with more land to facilitate
for the construction of integrated and campus-like office complexes. However, many of these
suburban locations lack the public and civic amenities that the employees of the organization
typically value.
Increasingly, progressive organizations are recognizing the importance of attracting and retaining
skilled labor inthe technology industries. Today, corporations are investing in people and studying
the criteria for what makes them more productive. Consequently, these organizations are seeking
ways that the design of the workplace can support user satisfaction and performance. Many
organizations are making significant investments to improve the quality of their office facilities with
the application of design and technology.
Inmany instances, technologies relating to the organization's core competencies have been
implemented inthe new workplace. Advances in monitoring systems, computer facilities
management and network infrastructures have been introduced in many high technology office
environments. Most of these systems provide an increased level of control between the
management of the organization and the physical facilities.
Given these new developments, how can design respond to the broader forces impacting the
workplace? On the whole the design profession has neglected the rapid advancements that
are taking place in the high technology workplace. Most architectural practices remain narrowly
focused inthe realm of aesthetics and the formal design of individual objects. The contemporary
off ice isaffected by not only architectural design but also by management processes, technological
innovation and strategic decisions. Inmost cases the impact of larger forces on the physical design
of environments and objects has remained unexplored in architectural design. Examining the
intersection between organizational forces and physical space may effectively improve the design of
new or existing workplaces. For this to occur, however, specific issues need to be identified and
situated in the context of the design process in order to articulate the areas where designers can
rethink the design of high technology office environments.
Increasingly the challenge for designers of the workplace lies in understanding the implications
of the organization's technological infrastructures. Technologies are enabling space planning
and management systems to exchange with other workplace-related data such as personnel
management information. The benefits of computer integration may result inthe improvement
in operational and time efficiencies but there isthe concern that the increased use of computer
assisted facilities management systems will create atendency for further rationalization of space
design and planning. This rationalization can be detrimental to the quality of the workplace
environment if rules are imposed restricting many aspects of the workplace and reinforcing the
standardization of components. One aspect that designers can impact in the area of computer
integrated building systems isthrough exploiting the technologies and their insights for better
design outcomes. Many of the computer aided facilities management tools, for example, have
focused on representing tacit information of the organization. These tools have the possibility to
not only facilitate for functional processes but also to create a relevant space of opportunities to
actively promote design innovation within the organization.
One of the goals of the thesis isto examine the role of architectural design given the
overlay of technologies inthe workplace. The transformations taking place in informational
and communicational aspects of the workplace provide the opportunity to rethink the existing
approaches to office design and planning.
SCENES FROM THE OFFICE
SCENES FROM THE OFFICE
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MAPPING THE MODEL OF WORKPLAN DESIGN: SOME EXISTING PRACTICES
This chart diagrams the participants and some of their roles in the design process.
The conventional approach ischaracterized by a linear decision making process which
allows for an efficient and rational for fast track schedules. How can some of the
existing practices at different stages be augmented to improve the quality of design?
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DESIGN AS AN ACTIVE AGENT IN THE WORKPLACE
The approach taken by this thesis investigation isone that seeks to understand the mechanisms of
existing protocols and to operate within the constraints of the organization. This way an effective
response can be developed to assist in charging and improving on some of the existing techniques
already used informulating the design.
Inthe design for new facilities for a progressive software development company, even after
undertaking extensive user evaluation and developing mockups, the final outcome of the new
workplace layout was a homogeneous design that was implemented uniformly throughout the
office building. As a result, one configuration was applied to an area comprising of almost 400,000
square feet. While there were many issues that factored into the final design result, it seems
that after investigation, the result had less to do with lack of motivation for a more innovative
solution than with the mechanics of the design process itself. There was the thinking on the
part of the designers, suppliers and the organization to work towards abetter solution but the
design resulted in the development of one workstation configuration that was limited inflexibility.
Why was this the case?
ACTIVATING COMMUNICATION
Traditional workplace evaluation techniques and linear models of office design contribute to some
of the limitations inthe design process. Many of the formal evaluation techniques emphasize
strictly technical and empirical approaches and as a result leave little room to elaborate on the
design process itself. These techniques often conclude with one understanding of the design
requirements within astatic frame and exclude the complexity and evolutionary nature of design.
New approaches that rethink the workplace survey and establish interactive techniques are needed
to allow users to provide feedback at multiple points in time. More qualitative approaches need to
be made where user experience can be documented and recorded in a manner which traditional
methods such as surveying and marketing-centered techniques cannot provide. For instance,
often people interpret their workspaces and give it a meaning through the uses and rituals that
accompany the objects they use daily. This has avalue in mapping people's relationships to the
objects in order to provide a context inwhich the objects are used. These approaches help to
underline the uses and interactions in forming experiences that unfold over a period of time.
The traditional survey methods also lack two-way communications exchange. The acceptance of
mundane work environments by employees isdue in part from the lack of user engagement in
the process of evaluating and designing the workplace. Many design outcomes for office layouts
utilize a 'one-to-many' design model that presumes one type of user rather than different types
with diverse demands and needs. Ideally, designers should be able to provide more than one
solution for the multiple and heterogeneous workplace. Inaddition, during the life of the office
building itself, the interior requirements will undergo constant change and adjustment. Itcan be
said that the more the office seems to work, the more it will be in aperpetual state of revision.
The design should therefore consider the development of aframework that can accommodate for
architectural specificity as well as programmatic indeterminacy.
Designing for two-way communication isa complex problem, however, developments in digital
media and computation are expanding the possibilities for visual representation and expression
incommunication. The role of communications media can be an important contributor to the
process of designing an office space. Effective exchange of information between designers and
users isseen as a crucial component to asuccessful design intervention. Successful communication
indesign, for instance, can result in the increase inscope and complexity of the design product
as a result of the benefit from resources of multiple inputs and expertise. These communications
tools could be embedded within existing informational infrastructures that are already in place
for managing and maintaining building and physical assets within the organization. Typically the
purpose for these systems, such as an electronic facilities request system, has been to increase the
efficiency of response to practical issues such as mechanical and plumbing problems. While these
systems effectively address purely pragmatic issues, their potential to serve as design tools isalso
significant. It isinteresting to consider these systems as possible factors in impacting the design
of environments and objects. Increasingly, designers working on offices should be responsible
for developing strategies that mediate technological devices with the users of the space. Design
should be engaged in establishing relationships with tools and with the environments and
workstations. The technology infrastructure can expand beyond its current functionalities that
strictly emphasize on maximizing operational efficiencies.
Inthis design exercise, data visualizations were developed from information collected from the workplace
strategy planning analysis. The concept of the visualization was to rethink the workplace survey and develop
an easy to use and interactive tool that can be given to users to provide feedback not only at one point in time
(for instance, during one consulting session between the researcher and client) but rather at an ongoing basis.
Rankings were correlated and mapped in geometrical space to form simple 3 dimensional spatial diagrams.
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Video isused not only for the purpose of documenting interviews and conversations but
also as a reflective technique to explore the possibilities for visual and spatial expression.
ACTIVATING THE PHYSICAL SURFACE
Most work activities today involve the user interacting with avariety of horizontal and vertical
surfaces. Low levels of differentiation however restrict many of the work surfaces in contemporary
offices. Inoffice design, materials and building components are often modular and arrive preformed as products to be installed on the site. As a result, the physical components are often
overlooked intheir contribution to the quality of the office environment. Experimenting with
building materials and construction systems to discover and extract new qualities from seemingly
prosaic elements may yield the construction of new and unanticipated programmatic and spatial
configurations for the organization.
Looking at the physical environments of many existing office spaces today, one can sense the need
to engage in developing more tactile qualities of the surfaces of work and communication. Recent
developments in architecture offer new possibilities for utilizing materials that are both resilient
to wear as well as possessing new properties. These new properties can directly and indirectly
affect various work activities of the high technology organization. Research and fabrication of
new material possibilities, and the invention of their expanded applications indesign, can assist
to produce programmable surfaces and even introduce unexpected forms of beauty within the
office environment. This exploration can be seen as an exploration of the organizational culture
excavation, where investigation can contribute to critical revision of the company and where new
possibilities can be made.
One of the biggest concerns with existing design models isthat at the level of the physical design,
the results often remain rigid and impervious to change. The implementation of current design
practices inworkplaces restricts the opportunities to produce successful responses to the diverse
needs of the contemporary workforce itself. We end up with offices that we see today because
we are not able to integrate the constituents of office making and participating users and suppliers
are not well integrated in existing models.
Ultimately, the programmatic requirements of the organization resulting from the workplace report
should not be the primary basis for a definitive workplace design. Instead, the focus should
be on developing atactical proposal that can benefit from the accumulation of individual design
interventions that occurring throughout the entire existence of the office (30+ years). This obviously
must be achieved in both an efficient and innovative manner, while at the same time maintaining
a relatively stable corporate and aesthetic identity of the organization. The underlying principle
of ongoing indeterminacy as a basis of designing interventions allows shifts, modification to
unforeseen events, strategy change to occur without creating chaotic environment. The following
section attempts to identify aspects that are of significant importance to the development of a
design model that emphasizes diversity.
DESIRED DESIGN OUTCOMES FOR THE NEW WORKPLACE
DESIGNING QUALITIES, NOT JUST FEATURES
It isnot enough to design for 'features' or 'amenities' into the workspace. The approach
of designing independent features without regard for the surrounding conditions misses the
interconnected nature that exists in project work and the organization. We need to study the entire
office landscape in order to design novel mechanisms for emerging interactions and to harvest
collective thinking and knowledge. The design can become an instrument that can transform the
decision-making process and include the user as part of a cooperative development environment.
This approach can lead to the exploration of adesign framework that isfocused less on introducing
new features and more on long term cooperative strategies.
CONTINUOUS DESIGN AND PROTOTYPING
Indeveloping the design strategy, a concept of ongoing prototyping could be included to respond
to the various design problems that take place inthe office. This approach increases the
possibilities of achieving results through the utilization of iterative prototype development. For
instance, agreater number of opinions can be gathered and results inthe greater number of
ideas and options can be generated. The collective brainstorming results inthe higher chance of
discovering options that are novel and useful. Inaddition, ideas that might seem wild, unrelated
or useless at first can function as springboards for future projects. By collecting a larger number
of ideas and feedback, there are more possibilities to combine them. By looking for combinations,
more novel and useful ideas are found. Italso means that most ideas can be improved upon
by modifying their attributes.
TECHNOLOGY FOR CUSTOMIZATION
Mass customization isa components approach for assembling individual products and services
to meet the unique need of users but at asimilar cost as amass-produced product. Using
information technology, users and designers can assemble products to meet specific and individual
requirements. Over time, the products can be amended so that they continue to meet changing
needs and continue to reinforce the relationships between the user and the designer. The
implementation of the mass customization approach requires a revising of the existing working
contract between the organization, the designer and the manufacturers. There needs to be
commitment by the organization to allow the designer to establish along-term collaboration with
the organization. Through this process certain innovations can be made from interplay between
the various participants of the collaboration.
DECISION MAKING AND WORKPLACE ENVISIONING
Aframework needs to be established in order to facilitate for choice on the part of the user. The
choices that people make should be seen as aresult of how they organize their daily habits. This
way, the decision-making can begin to be an object of reflection: why I do this inthe space, why I
like that about the office, how are others doing it as well? The framework could allow the user to
change their work style to a larger degree without raising undue inconvenience.
New representations are needed to partially function as graphic tools to diagram as much as
possible this design and decision-making processes. These representations need to effectively
document the flow and exchanges of the ideas generated by a large number of participants but
also visually analyze the process, show consensus and collective support or dissatisfaction with a
design move. The development of the temporal aspect in the representations will allow for the
construction of narratives while leaving visible the possibility of change.
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for change. Inmany offices today, people are too busy to interact with
each other because they might feel that it isnot productive for their time
or energy. Inan increasingly mobile workplace however, commmunication
isessential because there needs to be collaboration between people from
different projects and expertise inorder to innovate. How do we create
a framework that allows for people to feel welcome as collaborator and
innovator and not as a nuisance?"
20
TOWARDS A NEW SPATIAL PLANNING MODEL
Does this mean that spatial planning isno longer relevant inthe new workplace? Planning
will be required for establishing guidelines and managing the larger relationships between the
organization and the individual users. What isneeded isaspatial planning model that augments
the present one, which isbased on dominantly functional connections and hierarchies. An
infrastructure isrequired that makes use of the individual within the collective and isalso capable of
facilitating cultural as well as functional negotiations.
The idea of a more distributed spatial planning approach isclosely related to the concept of the
networked community of the organization. The new culture of work isideally the culture of
meaningful interactive communication between knowledge and place. While a explicit structure
isstill required, the design approach needs to transform from arigid approach to a more flexible,
negotiable set of tools utilizing various components that provide a blueprint for the various work
group constituents throughout the work organization. The role of the architect in this networked
design process isto become afacilitator directing the ongoing evolution of the office space.
Designers should develop an active role in the development of time based and organic paradigms
for facilitating the exchange of information related to issues about the physical environment of
the workplace.
DESIGNING THE RESPONSE: THE DESIGN INFRASTRUCTURE
I BELIEVE THAT SOME RADICAL REFORMATION OF
THE DESIGN PROCESS IS REQUIRED. MORE
CUSTOMER/USER VOICE IS NEEDED. MOST
CORPORATE EMPLOYEES ARE POORLY
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ORGANIZATIONS. AND EVEN IN CASES WHERE
THEIR REPRESENTATION IS MORE ROBUST WHAT
THEY END UP IS MUNDANE AND DRIVEN BY
CONCERNS OTHER THAN THOSE OF THE USERS.
SO, HOW DOES MORE CUSTOMER/USER VOICE
BECOME PART OF THE DESIGN PROCESS?
JIM LONG,
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The challenge emerges: how can the designer orchestrate a dynamic coexistence of activities
within the office landscape and generate new and unprecedented configurations? How can a
systematic process be developed to provide for effective interface between the organization,
the individuals and designers that conceived of the office design? An open-ended system is
seen to provide for effective design under these conditions and to balance the homogenizing
effect due to the overemphasis of business and efficiency factors. At the same time, the
system can be less disruptive to productivity with its incremental development approach that
yields appropriate designs while performing a higher number of design iterations. Interms
of the design infrastructure, three components are proposed establishing the interdependent
framework of design components:
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1) NETWORKED COMMUNITY TO LINK USERS AND PROVIDERS
Acommunications platform isdeveloped to effectively map the exchanges of the ideas generated
by a large number of participants and to visually analyze the process, show consensus and collective
support or dissatisfaction with adesign move. Given an initial spatial layout made by the designer,
the office organization quickly evolves and improves as users exchange, transfer and negotiate
with each other and with the designer when new demands arise. The communications tool can
mediate information exchanges between individual workers involved invarious design activities
inthe office as well as providing acommon platform for articulating the process of design for
the end users.
2)MATERIAL INNOVATIONS
Material innovations are considered in the development of the physical design for the purpose of
reducing both lead times and costs while maintaining design quality. New technologies are used
to customize, extend, and modify the physical properties of materials, as well as endowing them
with the power of change. Plastics have the most potential for design experimentation as various
forms can be as transparent as glass, as flexible as fiber and as metallic as aluminum. Collaborations
between the supplier and the designer will be established to develop faster turnaround in design
and manufacturing process. The resulting designs will also consider faster delivery techniques and
environmental issues such as recyclability.
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An alternative model of working relationship isdeveloped that rewards investment in innovation
by designers and manufacturers. Techniques are established for continuous reevaluation of
design interventions and results. The designer inturn can monitor the spatial organization and
performance of the company and can make adjustments and improvements as new conditions
occur. The interface therefore becomes a mediation device for managing more directly and
efficiently the physical and communication aspects of the work environment for both the client
and the designer.
The decentralized approach to office design encourages user participation. By involving users in
the design process, improvements can be made towards the chances of success in office design.
The very act of consulting users can lead to their greater commitment compared to conventional
design approaches. Communication isthe fundamental component that ties together various
aspects of the design infrastructure. Through the design of a common platform, the ability
for communication between the designer, the user, the organization and the manufacturer is
significantly improved.
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CONCLUSION
Can a building promote creativity? Creativity needs an elusive dosage of order and chaos, fixity
and improvisation.
Rem Koolhaas
The ideas underlying this thesis investigation were initiated in part by a personal motivation to
search for more effective means of design inarchitectural practice. How could some of the
characteristics traditionally valued in architecture - as a means to stimulate creative thought, to
facilitate for social interaction, and to solve problems through collaboration - be best leveraged in
today's society? The proposed design strategy attempts to address these issues inthe context of
the workplace and also the major changes brought about by the rapid evolution of information
technology. The proposal isbased on the premise that one needs to engage the user in order
to effectively design for the contemporary workplace. At the same time, the development of
an infrastructure for design activities acknowledges the idea that the office isacomplicated
intersection of conflicting and complimentary parameters and attempts to respond by providing
a open-ended framework that can absorb achanging series of further meanings, extensions and
intentions without entailing compromises, redundancies or contradictions.
One of the aims in developing a design infrastructure isto provide a scalable design strategy that
can be implemented incrementally over time. The strategy attempts to encourage the involvement
of the purchasers, the individual managers and the users themselves for the benefit of all
participants. The benefits for the organization include the idea that the integrity of the corporate
identity can be maintained while individual choice isbeing cultivated. From the project manager's
perspective, the infrastructure can assist in developing informal networks that can improve
the quality of the environment while maintaining formal ones for work and work related
activities. From the user's perspective, new opportunities can be developed across a range of
individual and collective activities, from improving communication exchanges between other users
to providing the ability to design more effective work environments. And by reducing the layers of
management, the design framework can bring new energy and creative collaboration to the office
that can lead to a more fluid design environment minimizing provider/user barriers.
The design scenarios that are developed inthe thesis attempt to demonstrate the practical value of
communication in office design. Associated with this isthe engagement of the digital environment
to communicate and support design. The scenarios demonstrate that the integration of building
data, visualization and communication to can facilitate for design decisions and representations. An
important challenge inthis collaborative approach isthe need to develop a set of digital tools
that can accommodate for uncertainties and complexities. Inaddition, long-term collaborative
design projects require maintenance and the willingness on the part of the users to commit to
using the system. The various social boundaries that exist in the multi-party collaboration need
to be continuously negotiated and renegotiated. This area has been the focus of research in
information systems and remote collaboration and it needs to be considered acritical issue within
the architectural design community with significant potential benefit for the profession.
One beneficial aspect of the digital environment isthe ability to systematically capture informational
knowledge. By mediating communication thorough a computer interface, acertain level of
information related to design issues of the office could be formalized. Although the primary goal
of the design infrastructure was not to develop aknowledge management system or creating a
knowledge repository, this capability can be extremely useful. It can further reinforce the notion of
design as arelational activity that could affect larger scales of architecture, and the integration of
the building and the surrounding environment.
Ultimately the principles of this architectural thesis remain rooted inthe notion of empowering
the user in the design of offices. The overall strategy of the design framework isto not end the
design process after the initial implementation of the office layout but rather to integrate design
interventions that occur throughout the life of the organization. Design isconsidered aconstantly
changing entity that ismost effective insatisfying the many complex factors of the office when it is
considered as acooperative, interactive and iterative development. The thesis aims to recognize the
importance of an individual within the organization and provide facilities for him or her to actively
collaborate with the designer inshaping the workplace environment.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Budd, Christopher. The Office: 1950 to the Present, in Workspheres: Design and Contemporary
Work Styles, edited by Paola Antonelli, 26-35. (New York: Museum of Modern Art, 2001)
Droege, Peter, ed. Intelligent Environments: Spatial Aspects of the Information Revolution.
(Amsterdam: Elsevier Science, 1997)
Duffy, Francis. The New Office. (London: Conran Octopus Limited, 1997)
Gourmain, Pierre, ed. High Technology Workplaces. (New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1989)
Horgen, Turid, Joroff, Michael, Porter, William, Schon, Donald A.Excellence By Design. (New York:
Wiley and Sons, 1999)
Kelly, Tom. The Art of Innovation: Lessons in Creativity from IDEO, America's Leading Design Firm.
(New York: Doubleday, 2001)
Koolhaas, Rem. OMA+Universal. (Tokyo: A+U Publishing, 2001)
Mitchell, William J., McCullough, Malcolm. Digital Design Media. (New York: Van Nostrand
Reinhold, 1995)
Norman, Donald A.The Invisible Computer: Why Good Products Can Fail, the Personal Computer
isSo Complex and Information Appliances are the Solution. (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press,
1998)
Smith, Paul R., Seth, Anand K., Wessel, Roger P., Stymiest, David L., Porter, William L., Neitlich,
Mark W. Facilities Engineering and Management Handbook. (New York: McGraw-Hill,
2001)
Vinyets, Joan. Prospective Design. Domus, May 2000, 80-85.
Vischer, Jacqueline C. Workspace Strategies: Environment as a Tool for Work. (New York:
Chapman and Hall, 1996)
ACADEMIC ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Peter Testa and Devyn Weiser for encouragement throughout the course of my architectural
studies at MIT and incultivating an environment for me to develop a greater understanding
of research and design.
Turid Horgen and Hiroshi Ishii for support and providing expertise intheir respective fields.
Frank Duffy, Edith Ackermann, Michael Schrage, Bill Porter and Ayse Birsel for critical insight
on the design projects.
Sam, Aradhana and Franco for sustaining the design studio chi.
Lora and Singh for inspiration, motivation, provocation and collaboration. You have been
the life force.
Numerous interviews were conducted in preparation for this thesis. I would like to especially
acknowledge the following people, whose oral and written communication provided
important information on specific aspects of workplace design: William Hunt, Belinda Tang,
Joe Wigglesworth and Stephen Wright (IBM Canada); and Jim Long and Marsha Skidmore
(Herman Miller). I would also like to acknowledge the Centre for Advanced Studies at IBM
for their support of my work and research at MIT.
All images and work are by the author unless otherwise noted.